Victoria McKenna’s Post

For the past year, or so, I've been writing feature articles for SME. It has allowed me to put on my journalist hat and learn how some of the most innovative manufacturing companies operate. It also meant reversing roles and working with media relations pros to help flesh out these stories. It's been great to work with responsive and helpful PR pros (you know who you are) and leads me to believe the profession is in good hands, even if there are a few bad apples who get all of the attention. Here's to the the pros that do the work and stay out the limelight. 🥂 #mediarelations #publicrelations #storytelling #writing

PR writing tips from a journalist ✍️ Are your press releases going to the right people? There’s no point in spending hours crafting the perfect press release if it’s just going to end up in the bin. Ensuring that both the publication and the person you’re sending it to are a good fit for your story is just as important as ensuring you’ve got a great release to send. Don’t send something to a journalist if you know it’s an area they don’t cover. It won’t be forwarded to the “right person” – it will just be deleted. Do your research beforehand, and you’ll massively increase your chances of your story being used. #PressRelease #WritingTips #MediaTraining #MediaCommunications https://lnkd.in/ezA2pu7m

Hey journalists! Let's dive into the essentials for crafting impactful stories. 1. Clear as Day: Keep it simple. Your goal is to make everyone understand, so no jargon! 2. Short and Sweet: Be brief and to the point. Every word should pack a punch. 3. Use Action Words: Be direct. It makes your writing more engaging and lively. 4. Speak Their Language: Tailor your writing to your audience. Connect with them! 5. Polished to Perfection: Proofread like a pro. Clean, error-free writing shows you mean business. 6. Paint a Picture: Make your readers see what you're saying. Engage their imagination. 7. Headline Magic: Create captivating headlines. The first impression matters! 8. Stir Some Feelings: Connect emotionally. A story that tugs at the heart stays with people. By nailing these basics, your stories will not only inform but also leave a lasting impact. Your words have the power to shape perceptions! #Writing. #Journalist #Improve

The next time you read a blog post or news article, try this exercise. While reading a blog post/news article, get a sense of the tone of voice. Is it written in an urgent, informative or excited tone? And then ask how yourself how you feel after reading the article. When writing professional communications, it's important to understand your intended audience and how they may respond to your writing. Your tone matters because it could determine what your audience does with that information. For example, when sharing breaking news, it's vital that you remain clear and concise on what's happening. You don't want to create hysteria or other false narratives. #PRTips

Wondering why #Journalists aren't getting back to you? And how often you should be following up? Emmét McGonagle's got ya covered with another #PR Hot Take as they share, "How many times is too many times to prompt a journalist." 👀 the video and share your thoughts below ⬇️ #PRNews #Publications #newsletter #prvideos #communications #journalismsnotdead #writers #leadwriter #publicrelations #bureau 

If you're a writer working with or hoping to find work in #media, this one's for you. For most of my life, I've been a writer publishing in print and digital newspapers, magazines, and other assorted media. Now, though, I also work with brands and individuals to help craft their communication and content strategies. Sometimes, this also means helping them sort out their PR. Now that I'm on this side, though, I'm privy to a lot of shit and shortcuts that writers and journalists get up to, and honestly, it's appalling. Today, for example, one of my clients was quoted in a VERY prestigious newspaper. I know the quotes she sent through because I helped her frame them, and while the writer kept my client's quotes intact, they used a lot of the information sent over by my client without attributing it to her—packaging it in a way that made it seem like they had written those chunks of the story themselves. The entire story was literally my client's quotes and her quotes paraphrased. And yes, the writer took a byline. I mean, this is not new. My partner, who worked in PR over a decade ago, talks about how this was standard practice even back then. Sometimes, the press releases he'd write would get published AS IS in the media, often with a byline attributed with it. This is often celebrated by the brands since, in a way, they've controlled the narrative entirely. He told me how his peers would sometimes copy-paste half-baked information from the internet and send it along, and the journalist would actually publish it without fact-check or edits. AS IS. I understand the pressures of #journalism and how tough it can be to churn out copy after copy, like writing is an on-off switch. We all take shortcuts, but we need to be better than this and do some kind of justice to the power we have. Is it just me who's shook by this? #writing #journalist #newspaper #magazinejob #copyeditor #PR

Monday press release! The Unsung Heroes of Corporate PR: Ghostwriters! 📝 🔹 Behind every major press release and public address, a skilled ghostwriter is crafting the perfect message. 🔸 PR teams handle the intricacies of communication, ensuring that the company head's name shines on every announcement. 🔹 They shape the narrative, manage public perception, and work tirelessly without any credit. Interested in leveraging ghostwriting for your PR needs? Let’s discuss it it! #30dayschallengewithLouisMbagwu #LinkedInforcreators #Ghostwriting #MondayMotivation #Writing #PressRelease

A single line can ruin your speech. Here’s how: Reporters latch on to the one overstatement, the one poorly chosen phrase, or worse, the one misleading claim in an otherwise well received speech. They then quote it in their piece. And that’s all that the public knows of it. Your speech rocked the room, the audience left buzzing, and the biggest, most important audience ends up with the wrong message. Ugh. The best way to avoid this is to edit your speech, line by line. If any one sentence were taken out of context, would it harm your reputation? Or send the wrong message? If the answer is yes, no matter how great it sounds, no matter how much the context explains it away, consider cutting it. You have to remember that you’re not just speaking the audience in front of you: You’re addressing your audience’s audience. #speechwriting #editing

Sometimes you just have to do it yourself. I get it: → You've got no budget. → You're on a tight deadline. → You still want a quality blog post, newsletter, etc. When hiring an editor isn't an option, here's how to do it yourself. (When hiring an editor IS an option, I'm your guy. Book a call using the link in the article.) https://lnkd.in/ddHihhkd #blogging #smallbusiness #contentmarketing

One of my biggest learnings from writing press releases, media statements and long format reports is to be "Simple and Clear" in my communication. The techical jargons and fancy words do not sell and will never do. Your audience is likely to lose interest and skip to the next story, if they have to put in a lot of effort to understand what's written. #communications #pressreleases #contentwriting #simpleisbetter